Mongol Rally 2017
Day 39.2: I will remember you, will you remember me?
Miles: 380ishCountries: KazakhstanStops: Shetpe -> Beyneu -> cop stop -> Aterau -> KoktogayPlaylists: Various Rock, Disney, and again DJ BrunoWe drove on, stopped for lunch, and grabbed a new jack in a bazaar. When I asked how much, the guy said 3500. I made a comment how the building said "negotiation centre" and asked if I should bother to negotiate. He sighed heavily and just replied 3000. I considered this a victory and didn't bother negotiating further. It was too hot and I was parched. We grabbed some lunch which was an enormous amount of my childhood foods just like...
Day 38: I'm on the highway to hell
Miles: 270Countries: Kazakhstan Stops: Aktau -> Shetpe -> Lion Rock -> Valley of Balls -> Shetpe -> along the highway -> BeynauPlaylists: Dire Straits, Foo fighters Bottoming out: 2Flat tires: 2Breakages: 2 (roof rack and jack)Out of gas: 1Upon leaving our friends, we didn't have enough daylight to make it to Beynau as planned. We aimed for the Valley of Balls. That's right. The Valley of Balls was near Shetpe which was on the way. There really is only one road in Kazakhstan so options aren't very many. We drove on to Shetpe and tried asking for directions to the...
Day 37: It's a state of confusion, I don't know whether I'm coming or I'm going
Miles: 3-4Countries: KazakhstanStops: too many, all within portWow. Where do we begin. We were kicked out of our rooms right after breakfast so staff can "clean" them. Meanwhile, we had no where to go with our luggage but the lobby that barely fit half of us comfortably without our suitcases. We sat around and waited for an hour or so for the boat to dock. Military then came on and we were led to another room near the entrance where we were forced to open and take everything out of our luggage. They walked around with a drug dog, and...
Day 36-37: I'm on a boat, m****f*****
Miles: 216.5Countries: Azerbaijan -> KazakhstanStops: Alat -> AktauGetting on the ferry at 5:30am meant everyone fell asleep as soon as we got into our rooms. For almost 500USD, this ferry provided us rooms with 4 bunk beds, a sink, and no window. We were handed a pile of folded sheets at the door as we walked to our room, not unlike a prison. The pile consisted of one sheet and one pillow case per person. No blanket. You basically had to choose if you wanted to cover the mattress a million truckers have slept on or cover yourself. The women's...
Day 33-36: I was left to my own devices Many days fell away with nothing left to show
Miles: 300ishCountries: AzerbaijanStops: sheki -> Alat -> Baku -> AlatPlaylists: Acoustic covers (Spotify), Songs to Make out to (Spotify), various playlists by othersWith full tummies, we got back on the road heading towards Alat. We got utterly lost in Sheki where google maps didn't seem to get its head straight. A fair bit of car scraping later on barely-roads, many directions asked, and even more U-turns, we found the Sheki Palace. It was very touristy so we didn't stick around but the city itself was beautiful. Not much happened here and we got back on the road. We barely talked...